With the popularity of various kinds of electronic devices having camera functions and the increase in capacity of storage media, opportunities at which even general users handle many image files (photo files) have been increased.
Thus, various kinds of image management software for supporting users in searching for a desired image file from many image files. In such image management software, for example, images can be displayed in an order based on generated dates of images. Using the date as a key, the user can retrieve a desired image from the displayed images.
In some cases, such images are displayed based on face images in the respective images. For example, images are displayed as an image group including similar face images (i.e. face images of the same person). Using the face image (person) as a key, the user can search for an image of a desired person.
However, when face images of many persons are detected from many images which are a target of management, there is a possibility that it is difficult to find a face image that becomes a key, from face images of many persons.